The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1887-09-14
SAVED BY A KISS.
Elma Grimm Awakened in Her Coffin by

Her Lovers Caress.
ISan Francisco Examiner.l
''Elma Griffin, died April 10, 1S49, aged
10 years, months and days"
The words were engraved upon silver
plate, bat there was no coffin under them,
Mrs. Purroy, an elderly lady, visiting
friends living on Clinton avenue, Alameda,
but whose home Is in Brooklyn, N. Y,
looked with an air of mingled pride and
reverence upon the carving, for her name
was once Elma Griffin, and the coffin that
was made to hold her remains.
ION my nineteenth birthday" she said,
my mother invited party of acquaint-
snces to our house to celebrate the day.
We lived some distance outside OF Viii.
was little soft and boggy. One of my
friends remembered this as she was about
to start for her home with her brother, and
she laughingly congratulated me on being
housed already and having no occasion to
brave the swamp. was wild young girl
in those days, and declared at once that /
would go with them and return alone.
Everybody present tried to dissuade me
except the girls brother. We started, and
when we reached my friends house was
conscious that my feet were quite wet, and
that disagreeable chill had crept over me,
but declined an invitation to go in, and
went away at once. OF course Rob-the
brother, mean-came with me, and some
how / forgot the cold and damp as walked
home.
al think we must have talked for long
time as we stood on my uncle's doorstep,
for suddenly Rob-my escort, mean. said:
'Elma, your face is very pale. Have !
kept you standing here too long He
talked to me for ten minutes after that, and
then wished me good might and left me.
rang the bell, and when my mother opened
the door l told her what 1 might have
known an hour sooner, if had given it
thought, that was really i'll. She hurried
me to bed Immediately, and when she
came to call me the following morning she
looked very anxious. By noon 1 was de
lirious, but could hear the doctor tell my
mother that had typhoid fever, and that
he could not hold ont much hope for my
recovery. / knew that my mother was
weeping, but / was always selfish girl,
and could only cry out: 'Robertl Rob-
ertl Where IS Robertp and they told me,
hardly thinking that 1 heard them, that
Robert had been sud- emily called upon to
start for California early that morning and
had not even heard of my illness. He sent
a letter to NE, however, but did not see
it until many weeks later.
81 grew rapidly worse, and gradually the
knowledge of all outward things passed
from me. fancy that / had a certain
me. was in another state of being, in
which the person acting and speaking
always strangely speaking-was myself,
and yet not myself. Then came an utter
blank, from which l awoke, after nearly
three weeks of oblivion, to see my mother
and the doctor standing by my bedside.
The doctor said the crisis was past, and
should probably recover, but did not feel
my interest in what he was talking about.
a dQUa of Uala toll
lowed. and the doctor, seeing that was
very weak, regarded me seriously, and
warned my mother that relapse should
be carefully guarded against. 1 used at
that time, too, to fall into curious physical
conditions that suppose were frances, 10
which / knew all that was going on around
me, but from which did not seem to care
to arouse myself by moving or speaking.
These periods lasted longer and longer, but
they were not observed, and as they were
rather pleasant than otherwise / said moth
ing about them.
One morning awoke from what seemed
to be natural sleep, and lay with my
eyes closed listening to sounds that I could
not at first interpret; but slowly the
knowledge came to me that nv mother
was sobbing beside my bed. tried to ask
her why she was grieving, but could not
move or speak. The trance was upon me.
l was sens tive, however, and knew that
was lying upon hard substance and not
upon the omfortable mattress of my bed.
/ could feel, too, very little cover over me,
and despite my eyelids being down the
gloomy darkness of the room could be de-
tected. Where in the world have they
carried me tor thought.
Presently / heard my mothers voice,
and knew she was speaking to my cousin
Mary, who was staying in the house with
us.
"'Poor Elma,' she said, Il was so sure
that God would spare her to me. She
struggled through that dreadful illness
only to die quietly in her sleep at last. 1t
is very hard, Mary
81 have often wandered since that I dip
not really die OF horror at that moment, as
i realized like lightning fash that they
thought was dead and had put me into
my coffin. They were going to bury me!
1 strove hard to speak, but the sphinx was
not more dumb than I. 1 tried to stir. but
the rock Of Gibraltar might have moved as
easily. Must my life be smothered out in
a grave for want of a little speach or action
Eowp thought.
est Is hard, indeed, dear aunt replied
Mary, but His Will be done You must
arouse yourself. The undertaken will close
the coffin in q few minutes. Do you think
Robert-Mr. Purroy-will be herep
Sc Il hardly think so now answered my
mother, YEARLY. Something must have
happened 10 delay him. He was to have
arrived at home yesterday, but he did not
come, and postponed the burial until to-
day. BE had not heard of her death. Poor
fellow The news will nearly kill him.
| There IS one person in the world, think,
who loved poor Elma as dearly as l did,
"'Oh, Robert Robert, l cried, with q ST.
lent voice, come quickly. If you look at
me you will know / am not dead
~ heard knock at the bedroom door.
Was it RobertP No, it was only the under
| taker.
" May close it now, ladies'? he asked,
in professionally mournful tones.
Nobody but my self knew that my heart
was beating. and even / hardly knew 1t as
the undertaken spoke. A second after
| ward it seemed to me that it throbbed
loudly enough for every one to hear it for
| somebody rang the door bell, and | knew
| as well that it was Robert as though my
sealed eyes could have looked through
brick and wood and mortar to see him
standing outside. Softly and quietly he
entered the room; gravely and calmly he
asked my mother and cousin to leave him
| for few moments alone with his dead.
/ He closed the door after they had gone out,
and, stopping over the coffin, gently kissed
me. Then he started. | heard the quick,
nervous movement. and 1 knew that J
/ was saved.
HE hastily called my mother, and the
doctor was quickly summoned. He saw
/ oN< 4Iak e